NOW - Part III: Little Lies
by Riot's Lair
Summary: As Shana and Anthony's wedding approaches, Riot and Jerrica's relationship is at odds, life without Pizzazz and Eric Raymond is short-lived, an unlikely alliance is made and the truth behind Emmett Benton's past with the military is revealed, changing Jerrica and the Holograms' future forever.
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1**

A subtle cool breeze swept through as the waves softly crashed against the cliff-side, interrupting an otherwise hot evening on the Southern California coast. It hovered around the mid-90s for much of the day, slightly warmer than average for August. Not a cloud was in the sky as the sun glistened off the sparkling blue ocean. Sailboats could be seen off in the distance as a pod of whales were spotted nearby. It was truly a magnificent scene.

As the evening tide rolled in, a large crowd had gathered beneath an iridescent white tent that stood atop one of the cliff-side estates in Malibu. A line of limousines and luxury cars were stretched along the Pacific Coast Highway as guests made their way to the gated estate where a Champagne and caviar bar greeted them upon their arrival. The fountain lights were lit brightly in anticipation of sunset and the falling water created a calm mist to cool down the star-studded guest list. Everyone was huddled around with flutes in hand, waiting for the event of the season to begin. Suddenly, the four-piece orchestra began, signaling everyone to take their seats.

Raya Alonzo appeared from the French chateau-inspired mansion that stood on the property and began her way towards the ceremony. She was dressed in a pale pink, off the shoulder gown, holding a bouquet of bright pink roses. As she reached the halfway point between the tent and the house, Aja Leith appeared, followed by Shana Elmsford and finally Kimber Benton – all in the same pale pink gown, all holding bright pink bouquets of roses.

Riot stood in front of the guests with his groomsmen at his side. He glanced over to Minx and Rapture who were seated next to his parents and smiled. He knew it was only a matter of time before his beautiful bride would make her way down to him. As Kimber joined the rest of the bridal party, the string quartet began to play Pachelbel's Canon in D and Jem made her way to her handsome groom in waiting. She wore a stunning couture strapless white taffeta gown, which had a radiant pink glow against the vibrant sun. A Swarovski crystal belt accentuated her svelte figure. The dress was a perfect match to the iconic pink-haired singer's sense of style. Riot beamed at the sight of his love approaching.

Once the rock star reached her groom, the Reverend began. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the marriage of Jem and Riot." The couple exchanged sweet glances. "If there is any reason why these two should not be united in Holy Matrimony, speak now or forever hold your peace."

The crowd remained silent. As the Reverend was about to continue on with the ceremony, a figure stood up at the back of the crowd. "I object!" a familiar voice said out loud, followed by a sinister laugh. Stunned, everyone turned their heads to see who would object to such a perfect match. It was Pizzazz.

"What's the meaning of this?" Riot demanded to know. "And how did you get in here? You're supposed to be at the Betty Ford Center."

"Never mind how I got in here," the Misfit replied. "Do your parents know that the woman you're about to marry isn't really who she says she is?"

"What are you talking about?" Jem interjected.

"Isn't it time to reveal to the world who you really are, Jerrica Benton?" Pizzazz retorted. Everyone gasped. Jem and Riot were speechless.

"This is not the time nor the place for your antics, Pizzazz!" an irate Riot sneered, motioning for security to take her away.

"But how did you know?" a shocked Jem gasped.

"I overheard Minx and Rapture talking about it," she revealed.

"How did you two know?" a stunned Jem said, turning to the two Stingers, who were unsure how to respond. "How did you two know?" she asked again. Their heads turned to Riot whose face had turned from a look of shock to a look of horror. "You told them?" she demanded to know.

"I'm sorry, Jerrica," he quickly replied. "I-I-I didn't mean to –,"

"How could you, Riot?" she began to cry. "You told me it was my secret to tell. I thought I could trust you!" she barked as she threw down her bouquet of white roses and ran towards the chateau, which Riot had purchased as a wedding gift for her. All four Holograms followed.

"Great!" Pizzazz remarked. "You can marry me now," she flamboyantly said to the Stinger.

An even more horrified look came across Riot's face. "Jerrica!" he began to yell. "Come back, Jerrica! Please come back!" he cried. Riot began to run after his bride, not paying any attention to his surroundings and suddenly fell into the pool. He tried swimming up to the surface, but couldn't. "I'm going to drown," he screamed. "I'm going to die before I can explain the truth to Jerrica!"

"Riot!" said a voice. "Riot, wake-up!" Drenched in sweat and gasping for air, Riot awoke from his nightmare. "Are you okay, man?" Anthony Julien asked.

"Anthony!" he gaped as he caught his breath.

"Sorry to barge in your room like that," Anthony began, "but I heard you screaming Jerrica's name from down the hall."

"It was just a nightmare," the Stinger murmured. "It was a horrible nightmare."

"Care to talk about it?" his friend asked. Riot despondently shook his head no, not wanting to reveal the truth about Jem's identity to him. "That bad, huh?" Anthony asked. Riot nodded yes. "I need to head out. I have a meeting with my real estate agent to close on the house," he explained. "Are you going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine. Thank you, Anthony," his friend reassured him.

The two had become fast friends since the Stingers hired Anthony to direct their first music video. It seemed like an odd friendship at first with their contrasting personalities. However, their mutual respect for each other professionally, as well as their love for basketball, set the stage for a great new alliance in Hollywood. With their respective relationships with Jerrica and Shana, Riot and Anthony found themselves spending more time together on a social level. So when Anthony decided to put his condo on the market and it quickly sold, leaving him without a place to live before the wedding, Riot generously offered for Anthony to stay with him at his sprawling penthouse until the big day.

"Alright, I'll see you later, man!" Anthony replied as he turned to leave.

Riot heard the front door shut as got out of bed to head to the shower. His dream was on the forefront of his mind. It had become a recurring nightmare since the Independence Day concert over a month ago. While Minx and Rapture had made good on their promise not to mention anything about their knowledge of Jem actually being Jerrica, Riot was constantly feeling guilty for not being honest with her. Although he wasn't the one who told them, he felt responsible for not guarding her secret like he had promised her. It pained him to keep this secret from her, but it worried him even more to think he could lose her for good if she found out.

Despite the guilt he carried, the past few weeks had been the best ever in his life. After the fiasco at the concert, Rio left Los Angeles for good. No one knew exactly where he went, but Riot heard from a reliable source that he had accepted a job offer from a computer software company in Seattle. Then there was Pizzazz. Once her father got wind of her schemes against Riot and Jerrica, Harvey Gabor immediately checked her into a mental ward for psychiatric evaluation. Embarrassed by her behavior, Mr. Gabor promised to give Riot anything he wanted that money could buy as long as he kept Pizzazz's stint in the mental ward a secret. Instead, the press were told by Stingers Sound that she had checked into a rehabilitation facility for substance abuse. Losing Stormer, Pizzazz and their music contract, the Misfits officially disbanded.

With the Misfits gone from the record label and Craig Phillips as the company's new executive producer, a new breath of life swept through Stingers Sound. Eric Raymond was still missing, but that had no bearing on business. Riot had taken Stingers Sound from the cellars of the music industry and made it one of the sought after companies to sign with in just a matter of months. Teaming up with Starlight Music had been great for business and Jerrica was a greater mentor than Raymond could have ever been, if he had been around. In the midst of regular business matters, Riot had the company's legal team looking into removing Eric as co-owner of Stingers Sound, citing job abandonment. Riot had a feeling it would be just a matter of time before he would own the company outright. This made him even more driven and confident to take Stingers Sound to the top of the music world. Everything was falling into place for him professionally.

Remembering his meeting with the lawyers for later that morning, Riot turned to the digital clock in his bathroom to check the time. It read 8:45 AM. "Time to go," he sighed as he turned off the faucet and dried off his tanned and toned body. It was time to conquer another day for the hottest name in music.


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

"That was Anthony," Shana announced as she joined the Holograms in the fitting area at Regine Cesare's new boutique on Rodeo Drive. The five ladies were there for a final dress fitting before Shana's big day. "He's off to close the sale on his house," she sighed.

"Well, isn't that a good thing?" Kimber wondered, sensing the anxiety in Shana's voice.

"Yeah," Shana murmured, "but it's just happening so fast."

"Cold feet?" Raya asked, a bit concerned with the stressed look on Shana's face.

"No, not really," she wearily answered. "There's just a lot of things we need to do for the wedding and he's just so busy with the move," she commented. "Oh, and Riot overslept," she added, turning to Jerrica. "Anthony mentioned something about a nightmare."

"Poor Riot," the Starlight executive remarked. "He's been so busy finishing up this album and trying to get Eric legally removed from Stingers Sound. It's really taking a toll on him."

"How's that going with Eric?" Raya asked.

"He has a meeting with his lawyers this morning," the Starlight executive replied.

"Well after today, we'll be done recording!" Aja happily proclaimed. The Holograms had one final recording session for the Christmas album that afternoon. "That should relieve his stress levels a bit," she added. While Aja had been skeptical of Riot, she was suddenly becoming his biggest supporter within Jerrica's group of friends.

"Yes, and then we can focus on having fun at Shana's wedding!" Kimber enthusiastically added.

"I can't believe we're leaving for Hawaii next weekend!" Shana marveled. "It's gone by too quickly."

"I can't believe the girls will be back from camp in a few days," Aja chimed in. "It's going to be a zoo getting them settled at home and then pack for the wedding."

"I can't believe you're leaving us for a whole year at the end of the month," Jerrica glumly added.

"You, guys!" Shana began. "It won't even be a year. If everything goes smoothly with Anthony's movie, we should be back for Lela's graduation."

Anthony was set to direct an epic movie in Sicily. Although filming wasn't scheduled to begin until closer to October, he wanted to head out to Europe to get acclimated to the area and life abroad. Fearing that a year apart from Shana would lead to an eventual breakup, he asked her to marry him and she accepted. While the Holograms weren't thrilled about Shana moving away for a year, they knew it would be a great opportunity for her to focus on her fashion living close to Milan and Rome. Plus, the other Holograms were looking forward to taking some time off themselves from music. With half of the proceeds of the upcoming Christmas album going to the Starlight Foundation, the Holograms didn't need to work to support the foundation for at least a year according to sales projections. It was perfect timing as Kimber had a wedding to plan, Aja found herself wanting to spend more time with Craig as he adjusted to his new job and new life in Los Angeles, and Jerrica was busier than ever with Starlight's new acts. Raya was the only one who didn't have major plans during the Holograms' hiatus, so Riot happily agreed to let her drum for one his bands, Silver Streak, while their drummer recovered from a cocaine addiction. With the Holograms focusing on different aspects of their lives and the Starlight girls starting another school year, things were definitely changing at the mansion.

"Speaking of Lela's graduation," Aja interrupted as everyone but Shana headed for the dressing rooms to begin their fittings, "Craig told me that Riot got Francesco Marino to do Lela's senior photos." Francesco was an up and coming fashion photographer from Naples who spent the last year shooting cover photos for some of the biggest magazines in the world. He also happened to be a big fan of the Stingers and one of Riot's favorite photographers.

Jerrica amusingly smiled. While she couldn't help beam at the thought of having such a wonderful boyfriend whom her friends had fallen head over heels in love with after loathing him for the first six months they knew him, she was starting to feel that something wasn't right. Riot made it a mission to make sure Jerrica's every whim was catered to while asking for very little in return from her. She couldn't tell if she wasn't being as great of a girlfriend as he deserved, or if he was feeling guilty over something else. Jerrica began to sink into her thoughts, not hearing what the Holograms where saying to each other from behind their dressing room curtains.

"Can Riot get Francesco to photograph my wedding?" Kimber laughed. "All the great ones are already booked for next June." All the Holograms laughed, except for Jerrica. "Is Jerrica still here?" Kimber wondered.

"I'm here," Jerrica finally replied. "I'll see what I can do," she said, trying to sound playful.

"Is everything okay in there?" Kimber asked.

"Yeah, everything's fine," she replied as the four bridesmaids emerged from their dressing rooms.

"Oh! You all look outrageous!" Shana shrieked upon seeing her bridesmaids in their dresses. It nearly brought her to tears as she realized she would have to spend the next year away from her dearest friends.

"Good morning, everyone!" Regine enthusiastically greeted them as she appeared from the back office.

"Hi, Regine," they all greeted her back.

"You all look wonderful!" she complimented them. "But where's Jem?" she asked, scanning around the boutique, expecting to see the pop princess nearby. All the Holograms turned to Jerrica.

"Ummm," she began to mutter. "Jem probably won't be at the wedding," she managed to tell the designer.

"Oh!" Regine replied, greatly surprised that Jem wouldn't be in attendance.

"Yeah, something came up with her family and she has to be in, um," Jerrica paused, "in New York."

"Oh! I didn't realize Jem was from New York," said Regine. "That's too bad that she has to miss Shana's wedding." The Holograms all nodded in agreement.

"That's quite alright," Shana replied before she could continue. "Shall we get this fitting started?" she said, changing the subject.

"Yes, absolutely!" the French designer replied, motioning for her assistant to help. "I can't wait to see you all on the big day, especially you, Shana," Regine smiled. "You are going to mesmerize Anthony!"

"I bet he's already mesmerized now!" Kimber laughed. Shana blushed.

The fitting was underway. First, Regine and her assistant, Anastasia, tended to Jerrica and Kimber's dresses as the girls chatted away about wedding details. Then it was Aja and Raya's turn. Once the bridesmaids were finished, it was time for the bride's final dress fitting. Aja and Raya changed back into their normal clothes while Shana changed into her dress. Regine and her assistant left the Holograms to return some calls as the Benton sisters waited on the chaise chairs.

"Is everything okay with you?" Kimber quietly asked Jerrica. "You seem out of it today."

The older Benton sighed. "I'm okay," she reassured her. "It's just that Riot's been wonderful lately, a little too wonderful sometimes," Jerrica confessed.

"What do you mean?" Kimber questioned her sister, giving her an odd look. "Riot's been a dream boyfriend. He loves you beyond measure, Sis."

"I know," Jerrica mused. "He truly is perfect," she smiled. "It's just that," she paused for a moment before continuing, "he's too perfect."

"Excuse me?" Kimber couldn't help what she heard come out of her sister's mouth. "He's successful, talented, and incredibly gorgeous, and he worships the ground you walk on. He adores you! And did I mention how gorgeous he is? Now, how is that a bad thing?"

"What's a bad thing?" Aja interrupted as she emerged from her dressing room.

"Where's Raya?" Jerrica wondered.

"She's helping Shana with her dress," Aja replied. Shana and Raya had shared a special bond since Raya came along to replace her as the band's drummer when she took a break from music to pursue fashion. One would have expected her to hold some level of resentment towards the newest Hologram when she returned, but just opposite occurred. Therefore, it wasn't a huge surprise when Shana asked Raya to be her maid-of-honor.

"There's already trouble in paradise with music's _IT_ couple," Kimber raised her brow at her sister, turning the conversation back to Jerrica. "So, get on with it!" the red head demanded her pessimistic sister to continue.

"There's no trouble in paradise," Jerrica corrected the younger Benton. "Don't get me wrong. It's not a bad thing at all. He's wonderful. Truly wonderful. It's just that I feel like he's trying to make up for something."

"What do you mean?" Aja was curious.

"Like the other day for example," she began, "I got back from a lunch meeting and just casually mentioned to him on the phone how much I didn't like the new menu at Chez Louie. So what does he do? He calls the owner and offers him season tickets to the Lakers if he changes it back."

Kimber and Aja looked at each other with baffled looks on their faces. "You should _not_ be complaining, Jerrica Benton," Aja replied with a confused look on her face. "I can barely even get Craig to take me out to dinner these days, let alone get the owner to change the menu at my favorite restaurant. He's been so busy lately."

"I'm sorry, Aja," Jerrica replied, embarrassed that she was even complaining about how wonderful Riot was to her. "Do you want me to talk to Riot about going easy on Craig's work schedule?"

"It's not even that," the guitarist revealed. "We just haven't had as much time together as I thought we would. He always busy with something."

"Give it time," Kimber advised her friend. "Believe me, it's a big adjustment going from a long distance relationship to one that's not," she explained, referring to her and Sean. "But in the end, it's all worth it," she smiled, glancing at her dazzling engagement ring. "You guys will find a new norm, Aja, and it'll all be fine," Kimber reassured her.

"I know," Aja sighed. "But Jerrica, you certainly have nothing to complain about with him," she said, turning the subject back to her friend.

Kimber agreed. "Riot loves you, Sis. I'm not surprised at all by anything he does, especially when it comes to you," she laughed. "It's Riot we're talking about here! It's all or nothing!" The girls all broke out into laughter.

"Plus, I think he just feels bad about your earrings still," Aja added.

"Why would he?" Jerrica wondered. "It's not like he's the one who lost them."

"Yeah, but that's one thing he can't get for you," Aja pointed out. "He can get you just about anything in this world, except for your earrings. For someone like Riot who's used to getting anything he wants, especially when it's something for you, that probably bothers him more than you realize."

"I guess you're right, Aja," Jerrica agreed. "That makes more sense than anything else I could think of."

"Like what?" Kimber wondered.

"Like," Jerrica paused, "I don't know. It's silly that I'm even having this conversation with you guys."

"Yes it is!" Aja replied in agreement. "You've got a great guy and an even better thing going with him. Don't let whatever insecurities you may have get in the way of it."

Jerrica smiled. She knew they were right. She did have a great thing going.


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

The clock read 6:30. Riot sat back against his leather couch, Scotch in hand, staring blankly into the ceiling. It had been a long day of meetings. Despite a full plate that he needed to deal with before leaving for Hawaii, the only thing he could think about was Jerrica. The longer he kept the secret from her, the more guilt he felt. Even before they became a couple, Riot had always been upfront with her. He wanted to maintain an honest relationship with the woman he loved, but he couldn't find it in him to tell her the truth about Minx and Rapture in fear of losing her. She meant the world to him. In his eyes, there was no other person in the world who could understand him as Jerrica did. Jem was the perfect match for Riot, the musician. However, as he took his responsibilities as Stingers Sound more seriously and made the company more successful under his control, Riot realized there was more to his life than just being a rock star. What he needed in his life was more than just another rock star, even if it was Jem. As Rory, he needed someone who could understand his life on and off the stage, who could challenge him to be a better person each day, and who could be the constant that he needed when life got too crazy. That person was Jerrica. It was all too perfect that she was the one behind the Jem persona. Now, his fear of losing her put their relationship at odds.

"I thought I'd find you here," a familiar voice said to him.

Startled, Riot quickly got off the couch to greet his surprise visitor. "Jerrica! I mean, Jem, my lovely," he smiled. "I wasn't expecting you."

"Long day?" she asked, eyeing the drink in his hand, as she removed her key from his front door.

"As a matter of fact, yes," he answered, moving towards her. "That obvious?"

"Well, you did forget you invited me over," she smirked as he wrapped her in his arms.

"I'm sorry," he sighed. "I just have a lot on my mind," he explained, holding her tight. "But I'm glad you're here."

"I certainly understand," she replied. "I'm glad I'm here too," she murmured. After a long day of recording, it felt good to be in his arms.

"How was your day?" he asked as he released her from his embrace and led her towards the couch. "And why are you dressed as Jem?" He gazed at her pink hair and more than usual make-up. It had been over five weeks since her Jem star earrings were stolen and there were no signs of them anywhere in the city despite the Holograms and Riot's efforts to locate them. Not being able to quickly change between herself and her alter-ego, life for Jerrica became a bit challenging, especially when both she and Jem had to be at the same place at the same time. Fortunately, the Holograms only had a couple of performances that summer and a handful of scheduled TV appearances. Jerrica kept her Jem appearances to a minimum and only turned into her alter ego when necessary.

"Long," she replied, nestling herself up against him. "I didn't get a chance to change after the recording session. I didn't want to keep you waiting," she smiled.

"That's right," he said. "I had forgotten you ladies were finishing up with Craig today."

"You did have a stressful day," Jerrica commented. "You've been anxious about finishing this album for days. I can't believe you forgot."

Riot sighed as a he took a sip of his drink. "The meeting with my legal team lasted longer than expected. I've been in a bit of a fog since I left the office. Luckily, I have Craig now to deal with production," he sighed. "Otherwise, we'd all still be there." With the former drummer as his executive producer, Riot had handed off most of the production duties he used to do to focus on the management side of the company.

"What did the lawyers say about getting Eric Raymond removed from the company?" Jerrica eagerly asked.

"They think it's a good idea for the company to formally file a missing persons report," he replied. "They said the police will look into him disappearing from town. When they see that he left on his own recognizance, a judge will be more inclined to rule in my favor to have him removed from the company due to job abandonment."

"I see," Jerrica mused. "I think that's a good move."

"Well, yes," Riot paused thoughtfully. "Unless having the police looking for him perks up his interest in what I'm doing with the company and he returns," he sighed. "There's always that possibility."

"So what are you going to do?" she wearily asked.

"I don't think I have any other choice," he answered. "I told the attorneys to file the report with the police today. Either he comes back and I can deal with him directly about handing the company over to me, or I do it this way. Regardless, it's not fair to me and everyone else at Stingers Sound to be working so hard while he's sipping Margaritas in God only knows where."

"Well, I applaud your decision, Rory Llewelyn!" Jerrica enthusiastically beamed. "You've been working so hard and you're right, it's not fair to you while Eric Raymond is just waiting around for his paychecks to roll in."

"Thank you for the encouragement," he replied, stroking her cheek. "And it would be great to fire that so-called secretary of his. The only thing she does around there is wait around for his paycheck so that she can bring it to the bank for him."

"At least that's one less thing _you_ have to do," she teased.

Riot let out a small laugh. "Thank you for being here," he smiled longingly at her.

"Well, thank you for having me," the pink-haired rock star slightly blushed, stroking her fingers through his curly, blond hair. "I should probably change before Anthony walks in and sees _me_ , not Jerrica."

"No need to worry," he reassured her. "Anthony surprised Shana with an overnight stay at the spa tonight since they've been so busy with everything lately."

"Oh!" Jerrica was surprised. "That explains why she left so quickly today."

"May I get you anything?" Riot asked. "I was so disillusioned when you arrived that I completely forgot to ask."

"No, I'm alright, but thank you," Jerrica smiled. "I would really like to change back into myself though," she said, getting up from the couch. "I didn't realize how much make up it takes to look like me. It was always Synergy," she laughed.

"What do you feel like for dinner?" the Stinger asked, following her off the couch. "Would you like to go somewhere?"

"Let's stay in!" the Hologram yelled from his bathroom.

"Dinner at home it is," he murmured to himself as he flipped through a stack of take-out menus from restaurants nearby. As he perused through possible dinner options, Riot carefully weighed his thoughts on telling Jerrica the truth that night. The longer it continued, the greater the possibility of her never forgiving him. He had to tell her before it was too late and she heard from someone else.

"So what did you decide?" she cheerfully asked, emerging from the hallway as Jerrica in a pair of ripped, white jeans and a black Stingers t-shirt. Riot slowly looked up from the counter. She could see the sadness in his eyes. It reminded her of when he thought he had lost Jem to Rio earlier that summer. "Riot, what is it? What's wrong?" The look of joy on Jerrica's face suddenly turned to concern.

Riot stayed silent as he tried to collect the right words in his head. "Minx and Rapture know," he finally managed to say.

"What?" a confused look appeared on Jerrica's face. "Minx and Rapture know what?" As those words left her mouth, Jerrica suddenly realized what Riot meant. The concerned look on her face suddenly turned to shock.

"I'm sorry, Jerrica," Riot quietly replied.

"You told them?" she gasped. "How could you, Riot?"

"It wasn't like that at all," he tried to explain, but Jerrica felt too betrayed at that moment to listen to his words.

"You promised me you would guard my secret with your life!" she retorted. "You said it was _my_ secret to tell!"

"But, Jerrica, I-," he tried to explain again, but Jerrica wouldn't hear of it.

"No, Riot!" she quickly interjected. "I trusted you!"

"Let me explain, Jerrica!" he finally barked at her. Jerrica was taken aback by the force in his voice. He had never raised his voice once to her before. "Minx and Rapture only found out when they followed the Misfits to the house in Malibu," he began. "They called the mansion and Aja told them you had gone to meet me. Only when _you_ arrived, it wasn't you. It was Jem."

"So they've known for weeks and this is the first time you've told me?" she asked.

"I didn't know how to tell you," he replied. "Between your earrings, Rio, and Pizzazz, the last thing I wanted to do was let you down. I'm the one person in this world you can trust more than anyone else, yet I wasn't able to keep your secret safe," he admitted. Jerrica was silent, unsure of what to think and what to say. After an awkward moment of silence, Riot pleaded with her, "Please say something, my love."

"I don't know what to say," she finally managed to tell him. "I can't say I'm not disappointed," she said. "But I know you didn't do it on purpose," she added, much to his relief.

"Jerrica, I promise you I won't ever let you down again," he said as he reached for her, but Jerrica stepped back. "Jerrica, am I not forgiven?" he asked, surprised by her distance. "I made them promise not to say a word about you being Jem ever again."

"I forgive you, Riot," she answered. "But I just don't know what to make of this right now."

"What do you mean by that?" he quickly asked.

"I don't know how I'm supposed to deal with your bandmates knowing about Jem being me," she explained. "I need some time alone to think. I should go."

"Wait, Jerrica!" He tried to stop her, but she refused.

"Let me go, Riot! Just let me go!" she demanded.

"You are still angry with me," he sadly remarked.

"It's not you I'm angry at," she began to explain. "I'm angry at everything that's happened. I'm risking everything, because -," Jerrica paused thoughtfully.

"Because of me?" he wondered.

Jerrica sighed. "I love you, Riot, but I think we need a break."

Riot's face turned stone cold. "You want to end what we have over this?" he asked.

"No," she replied, "but I just need some time to think things through," she added.

"Think what through?" he demanded to know. "How much I love you? Jerrica it was an accident that they found out! I waited this long to tell you because of how you would react. And I was right."

"I know it was an accident," she retorted. "But you should have told me sooner!"

"I tried, Jerrica, I really did!" he replied back.

Jerrica sighed. "Look, Riot. I just need some time to think, alright," she said, reaching for his hand. "I know you love me, but I just need some time to process this all."

"Alright," he agreed. "I'll give you all the time that you need," he sadly told her as she let go of his hand and walked out of his penthouse.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

Pizzazz sat in her brand new Lamborghini with tears of sadness in her eyes. It was a welcome home gift from her father after a week-long evaluation in a mental ward, followed by a month-long stint at Betty Ford for substance abuse. The doctors at the mental facility concluded that her hallucinations were the result of her anger issues, exacerbated by her drug use.

The Misfit's anger problems all began with her mother walking out on her and her father. While a successful businessman, Harvey Gabor had no clue how to raise a child and left Pizzazz in the care of nannies. Growing up, Pizzazz felt isolated from her father and would act out as it was the only way to get his attention. His daughter's behavior frustrated him and pushed him further away from her. To keep Pizzazz happy, or so he thought, Harvey gave into anything she demanded from him. Unfortunately, this only shifted Pizzazz' inherent anger towards her parents to other people, especially Jerrica, Jem and the Holograms.

Once in rehab, however, the doctors were properly able to diagnose her issues and give her the proper treatment she needed. After her stay, the future looked optimistic for the former Misfit. While her band was no more, her father promised to help her get back on her feet once she was ready to re-enter the music scene. On top of that, she had met a gorgeous, up and coming actor while in rehab. Riot had finally become a distant memory. Things were starting to look positive for Pizzazz until she received a call from the police department's detective unit. Now, Pizzazz sat in her yellow sports car, parked outside of the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office.

"I guess I better do this," she mumbled to herself, wiping away the tears in her eyes and checking her makeup before getting out of her car.

As Pizzazz entered the lobby, she was promptly greeted by an older woman sitting behind a desk. With it being a Saturday morning, there was hardly anyone in the office. "May I help you?" the woman asked, examining the rock star's uber-eclectic style.

"I was asked by a detective named Mitchell Reynolds to come down to identify someone," Pizzazz hesitantly answered, fighting back the tears.

"Your name?" the woman asked.

"Phyllis Gabor," she replied.

"Come this way, please," the woman instructed Pizzazz to follow her down the hallway and through a couple of security-enforced doors. Before they could enter another room, the woman was called away. "You can wait here until I get back," the woman directed her towards an empty desk in the hallway.

"You're not going to leave me alone here, are you?" a creeped out Pizzazz asked.

"I won't be long," the woman reassured her.

"But wait!" Pizzazz pleaded. However, it was too late, the woman quickly disappeared into another room. "Great, just great," the Misfit murmured to herself, taking a seat at the empty desk while she waited for the woman to return.

The room was brightly lit, but the thought of what was behind all those doors along the long hallway didn't sit well with her. Apprehensive, Pizzazz began to tap her foot on the linoleum to end the eerie silence. Trying hard not to think about where she sat, alone, she began to hum _Outta My Way_. It was the Misfits' first hit single under Eric Raymond's management.

While her relationship with her former manager was at times volatile, she cared for him more than she would ever dare to admit. Pizzazz began to realize that Eric had become more than just her manager. He was her rock in her unstable life. He gave her the one things she loved most – music. Although they used each other to pursue their own fame and fortune, they were allies in an otherwise nasty world. He had always been there to save her when she needed help the most – not Stormer, not Roxie, and certainly not Jetta. And now, he was gone. She has lost her only true friend. Engulfed in a sudden feeling of grief, Pizzazz began to cry once more, oblivious to the footsteps down the hallway.

"Miss me?" an old familiar voice called out to her from behind.

Startled, Pizzazz jumped from the chair. "Eric!" She gasped once she realized who it was.

"The one and only," he smirked.


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

"Knock! Knock!" said a voice at the doorway.

Immersed in a pile of paperwork on her desk, Jerrica quickly looked up to see that it was her sister. "Yes, Kimber?" she greeted her.

"Riot called," the younger Benton paused, "again. I don't know how much longer I can keep telling him you're working. No one works this much on a weekend, even you."

Jerrica sighed and looked at the clock. It read 3:45. It was Saturday afternoon. She hadn't spoken to Riot since he came clean with her about Minx and Rapture knowing Jem's true identity. While she knew it wasn't his fault and didn't mean to hurt her by keeping the secret from her for weeks, she felt as if her life was unraveling before her eyes. Before Riot came along, she had complete control over the secret of Jem's identity. She had complete control over her life. Jerrica thought that perhaps she had gotten too carefree for her own good once she and the Stinger became involved. She felt that she needed to take a step back and re-examine where her life was headed now that Riot was in the picture.

"I guess I should give him a call," she finally replied.

"He sounded awful, Jerrica," Kimber revealed. "He feels very sorry about what happened."

"I know Kimber," Jerrica replied. "I'm not mad at him."

"Then why have you been avoiding him?" her sister bluntly asked.

"I don't know," she sighed. "I feel as if everything's been a blur since he and I got together," she began to explain. "I feel like I've lost a sense of control over my life -,"

"You mean, you've been living your life," Kimber interjected. Jerrica looked thoughtful. "Look, Sis," Kimber continued, "I won't lie to you. The fact that Minx and Rapture know about Jem poses a risk, but you do realize they are _very_ loyal to Riot."

"What are you trying to say, Kimber?" Jerrica asked.

"The last thing they would ever do is cross him," she looked at her sister poignantly. "So as long as you two are together, I can almost guarantee you your secret is safe."

Jerrica was somewhat amused. "So the key to making sure they don't say a word about me being Jem is to stay with Riot forever?"

Kimber smirked. "Like that'll be a difficult thing for you to do," she laughed.

"There are no guarantees in life, Kimber. I know you're helpless romantic," she smiled, "but look what happened to Rio and me."

"Jerrica, you need to stop doing this!" Kimber demanded.

"Doing what?" Jerrica huffed.

"You can't let what happened with Rio affect what happens with Riot. I know these are the only two people you've ever had a relationship with, but you can't forget that these are two completely different men and your relationships with each of them are different!" her sister lectured. "Plus, wasn't it you who kept a secret from Rio for three _years_?" Kimber reminded her, much to Jerrica's chagrin. "If you had told Rio sooner, while you were still with him, wouldn't you have wanted him to forgive you too?"

"It's different, Kimber," Jerrica countered. "I forgive Riot. It's just everything's been a whirlwind for me. Our relationship, the lost earrings, now this," she said, referring to Minx and Rapture knowing the truth.

"But he loves you," Kimber interjected. "Jerrica, aside from the girls and me, who has helped you pull off being Jem without Synergy's help? I mean, Riot's not the one doing your hair and make-up, but whenever _Jerrica_ needs to be around whenever _you_ need to be Jem, he's there." Kimber pointed out. "And he doesn't need to be," she added.

The older Benton stayed silent as she processed her sister's words. She knew Kimber was right. Ever since her troubles with Rio and Riot began, Kimber has always been more right than wrong. "I have been hard on him, haven't I?" Jerrica finally admitted.

"Just a little," Kimber smiled. "Have you told any of the other girls what happened?"

"No," the older Benton murmured. "Just you. I didn't want them to panic at the thought of Minx and Rapture knowing about Jem."

"So what do we do now that they know?" Kimber wondered. "Do we still pretend that they don't, or bring it out in the open between the Stingers and the Holograms?"

"Well, they don't know about Synergy," Jerrica added.

"At this point, there's no point even mentioning it," Kimber replied, alluding to Synergy's inability to change Jerrica into Jem without the earrings.

"Excuse me, Jerrica," Aja appeared in the doorway. "Detective Mitchell Reynolds is at the door for you."

Jerrica gave her sister an odd look. "Did he say what for?" she asked, turning back to her blue-haired friend.

Aja shrugged. "No," she answered. "He just said he wants to talk to you and Jem."

"And _Jem_?" Kimber looked baffled.

"I have a feeling it might have something to do with the missing person's report on Eric Raymond," Jerrica murmured. "Riot said they would looking into his disappearance."

"Should we call Riot?" Kimber asked.

Her sister hesitated. "Um, I think it'll be okay. I'll talk to the detective," Jerrica replied, getting up from her desk.

"Shouldn't we call a lawyer?" Kimber mumbled as she trailed behind her sister and Aja, who were on their way to the door where the detective was waiting.

Jerrica pretended not to hear her sister's remarks. Although she was starting to feel anxious about the detective being there, she knew it was probably a formality to get the case closed. "Hello, Detective," Jerrica greeted him at the door. "I'm Jerrica Benton."

"Miss Benton," the detective greeted her back with a handshake. "I'm Detective Reynolds."

"How can I help you?" Jerrica replied.

"Is Jem also here by chance?" he answered, peering into the mansion to see if anyone else was inside.

"No, she's not," Jerrica replied. "She's out of town," she quickly added, remembering she had told Regine that Jem would be in New York instead of Shana's wedding.

"Well that's unfortunate," the detective sighed.

Jerrica was dumbfounded. "I'm sorry, Detective, but is there anything _I_ can help you with?"

"I'm going to need you to come with me," the detective replied.

"What for?" Kimber burst out loud.

"For questioning," Reynolds answered.

"Is this about the missing person's report that Stingers Sound filed?" Jerrica nervously asked.

"That case is now closed," Reynolds revealed. "It's now a homicide investigation."

"A homicide investigation?" Jerrica was shocked.

"Yes," the detective answered. "We have reason to believe that Eric Raymond was murdered."

"Murdered?!" Kimber shrieked.

"Yes, murdered," the detective repeated. "And the prime suspect is the person who owns these earrings," Reynolds continued as he held a clear plastic bag with the Jem Star earrings. Jerrica's jaw dropped.

"Now we better call Riot," Aja remarked.


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

Stormer sighed.

"You can do this, Mary," Craig Philips urged his sister. "Do you want me to go inside with you?"

The former Misfit sighed once more. "No," she answered her brother. "I can do this," she tensely smiled as she got out of the passenger side of Craig's car.

"I'll be right here," he reassured her.

Stormer let out a small smile as she made her way to the building, dreading the task at hand. It wasn't as if Eric Raymond was anyone special to her. He was her manager for several years. However, she feared him more than anything. Being the most caring of all the Misfits, Stormer never liked the way Eric treated people. She was always weary of his motives. Yet, the last thing she ever wanted was for anything bad to happen to him. Now, she was steps away from entering the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office.

"May I help you?" a woman promptly greeted her as she entered the lobby.

"Uh, y-yes," she stuttered. "My name is St –, I mean, Mary Philips. I was asked by Detective Reynolds to identity a b-b-body."

"Please come this way," the woman instructed her, eyeing her blue hair. While Stormer had toned down on the make-up and began dressing more conservatively since leaving the Misfits, her royal blue hair was still quite the attention grabber. "May I have the name?" she asked Misfit.

"The name?" Stormer mumbled.

"Of the person you were asked to identify?" the woman clarified.

"Eric R-r-raymond," she managed to say, feeling a huge lump in her throat.

After a long walk through security enforced doors, the woman led Stormer to a room with a desk and several file cabinet. "Please give me a moment," the woman said to her as she looked through some files in one of the cabinets, pulling out one. "It looks like someone has already identified the body."

"Oh," Stormer replied. "May I ask who identified him?"

"Phyllis Gabor," the woman answered.

"She's already out," Stormer murmured to herself.

"Pardon?" the woman replied.

"I'm sorry, I'm just talking to myself," Stormer replied back. "If it's okay, may I still look?" she hesitantly asked.

The woman was stunned at such a suggestion. "I guess that would be alright," she finally answered, leading Stormer to a locked door down the hallway. "I'll let you have a moment," she said as she unlocked the door.

Stormer sighed upon entering the room alone. She hesitantly made her way to the examiner's table, unsure if she wanted to go through with it after all. It seemed like a good idea to help her find closure, but now she was having second thoughts. As she slowly began to lift the blanket, she closed her eyes and took one more deep breath. Upon exhaling, she opened her eyes to the shock of the sight before her. She gasped, taking a step backwards.

"M-ma'am!" she began to yell for the woman. "Ma'am," she said once more, wondering where the woman was. Stormer quickly went to the door. She quickly opened it only to find the woman gone and someone else in her place.

"Looking for me?" It was Eric Raymond.


	7. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

"What is the meaning of this?!" Riot demanded to know as he marched into the LAPD Detective Unit with his team of attorneys in tow.

"May I help you?" one of the detectives hesitantly asked, eyeing the two men and one woman in dark suits who accompanied him.

"Where might I find a detective Mitchell Reynolds?" he asked, trying to recapture some composure. It had been a whirlwind of an hour since Riot received the phone call from Kimber about Jerrica. Despite speaking to his attorneys earlier in the day, Riot had no clue about Eric's death and the subsequent investigation into his murder.

"You must be Rory Llewelyn," said a male voice. It was Detective Reynolds. While only in his mid-thirties, Reynolds was a seasoned veteran of the LAPD. He spent most of his career with the Hollywood precinct. Therefore, celebrity matters were nothing foreign to him. Despite standing a few inches shorter than Riot, the rock star's stature and celebrity were of no intimidation to him.

"You must be the detective," Riot replied without hesitation, trying hard no to erupt at the man for detaining Jerrica. After all, he was only doing his job. However, in Riot's eyes, he was doing his job poorly for making such a foolish mistake.

"Yes, I am," Reynolds began, "and you must be here about Jerrica Benton." Riot nodded. "Please, come this way," the detective motioned for him and his attorneys to walk before him and into a private room. The two men exchanged brief glares as Riot passed by.

"Is she here?" Riot asked as he took a seat at the table next to his lead attorney, James Foster. The other two opted to stand behind them.

"Yes," the detective answered, taking a seat across the table from the two men. "She's just down the hall," he explained. "She's been quite cooperative with this investigation."

"Is she a suspect?" Foster bluntly asked, much to Riot's surprise.

"Not quite," the detective replied, opening his folder of paperwork related to the investigation.

"Then why is she here?" Riot interrupted before the detective could continue.

"I realize the concern in regards to your girlfriend," Reynolds briefly paused, waiting for confirmation of their relationship from Riot. The Stinger nodded. "However, it's just our customary procedure in helping us narrow down our suspect list."

"And whom might be on that list?" Riot asked without hesitation.

"Without naming names," the detective began, "we believe the person behind Eric Raymond's murder is the person who owns these earrings." Reynolds pulled out a clear bag from his coat pocket. Inside were the Jem Star earrings. Riot was taken aback. "Would you happen to know that person?" the detective questioned him, seeing his reaction to seeing the earrings.

Suddenly, a million thoughts ran through Riot's head. Were those the actual earrings stolen from Jerrica, or were they a replica to frame her, or Jem? If they were the actual earrings, how did they tie Jerrica/Jem to Eric Raymond's murder? How much has Jerrica told him about those earrings and Jem?

"Umm," Riot stuttered, unsure of exactly what to say.

Before he could continue, his attorney jumped in. "Before we proceed with the questioning, I'd like to have a word privately with my client," he said to the detective.

"Of course," Reynolds answered, getting up from his seat to give them a moment alone. Riot watched as the detective disappeared from the room, shutting the door behind him. Certainly, Riot knew they could be seen through the mirror in the room.

As Riot spoke to his attorneys, Reynolds wandered down the hallway to the interrogation room where Jerrica was being held. "Your boyfriend's here," he said to her as he entered the room.

Jerrica quickly perked up. She had been sitting quietly, pondering the thought of revealing Jem's real identity to the detective to save the Starlight Foundation. The success of the foundation rested heavily on the success of Jem and the Holograms. With the Christmas album projecting huge profits, half of which was slated to go directly to the foundation, Jerrica had to protect the integrity and image of the Jem brand, and of course, Jem herself.

"Can I see him?" she quickly replied. While she was quite the independent woman, Jerrica needed Riot more than ever. As upset as she was earlier that he didn't tell her sooner about Minx and Rapture, she knew that paled in comparison to what she was about to face when it came to Jem's identity.

"In due time," Reynolds answered. "We have some questions we need to ask him first."

"So what does that have to do with keeping me here?" Jerrica wondered. "I've answered everything you've wanted to know."

"Except for one question," Reynolds replied. "Where's Jem?"

Jerrica stayed silent. She had already told him she didn't know other than she left town yesterday as the Holograms were now on break from recording and touring. However, the detective didn't buy it. Despite Jem's mysterious background, Reynolds knew if there was anyone who could get to her, it was Jerrica.

She sighed. "Look, Detective –,"

"You don't need to answer that!" It was one of the attorneys from Riot's legal team.

"You have no right to barge in here!" Reynolds barked at her.

"I have every right to be present with my client," she countered. "I'm Leslie Middleton, Miss Benton's attorney."

Just as Jerrica was about to ask who sent her, Reynolds quickly replied, "You can't be her attorney! You're _his_ attorney!"

"Mr. Llewelyn has dismissed me from his legal team," she explained. "My services are now with Miss Benton," she said, turning to Jerrica. Her client nodded in agreement, unsure of exactly what was going on, but figured Riot knew what he was doing.

"Very well," Reynolds grumbled.

"Now," Leslie continued, "unless you have any concrete evidence that links my client with the murder of Mr. Eric Raymond, you have no choice but to release her."

Reynolds sighed. He was dumbfounded. He was sure Jerrica would tell him exactly what he wanted to know about Jem if he led her to believe that Riot was a suspect as well. "Alright," he agreed. "But I would advise my client not to leave town if I were you," he warned her as he quickly glanced at Jerrica.

Ignoring the detective's threat, Leslie turned to Jerrica, "Let's go."

"What about Riot?" Jerrica whispered to her as they left the interrogation room. She saw Riot and his two attorneys through the window.

"He shouldn't be too long," Leslie reassured her. "He said to wait for him back at the mansion."

"I don't have a car," Jerrica replied. "Detective Reynolds drove me down here."

"I can take you," Leslie replied. "We have a lot to discuss."


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

Detective Reynolds watched from his office window as Riot drove off from the station in his Jaguar. He returned to his desk and sighed as he took a seat in front of the pile of paperwork related to the homicide investigation. The exchange between him and the Stinger had certainly taken an emotional toll on him. While Riot was far from belligerent, he surely knew how to manipulate a situation to his advantage and his frustration with Jerrica's arrest was certainly palpable. Reynolds didn't believe for one moment that Riot, nor Jerrica, were responsible for Eric's murder. In fact, they both seemed to have solid alibis. He had yet to look into them, but didn't suspect anything unusual. However, nothing seemed to add up with Jem. Were they trying to protect her? If so, that made them just as guilty as the pop singer, if she was in fact guilty. With the last two hours fresh on his mind, he began to go through the pile of paperwork on his desk.

He sighed once more and murmured to himself, "What are you two hiding?"

The medical examiner had determined that Eric was killed in the late afternoon of July 3rd. His body was discovered on a beach in Malibu the following morning around 9:30 am. Both Riot and Jerrica were at her house on the afternoon of the 3rd with their family and friends for the majority of the evening, but where was Jem? They each listed the same people when giving their alibis, but neither listed Jem at that party. In addition, the red star shaped earrings, similar to the ones Jem always wore in picturs, were found in one of Eric's coat pockets. While that clearly wasn't enough to convict her as a murder weapon with her fingerprints all over it would, it was enough to spark an investigation into her own whereabouts on the day of the murder as well as her whereabouts that day. If only he had something more to go by other than Jerrica's explanation of, "She said she was going to New York to be with family." Reynolds sat thoughtfully as he examined his notes. Suddenly, he looked through his Rolodex and picked up his phone to dial a contact.

"Detective Benson," said a female voice on the other end.

"Liz," he answered back with a smile. "It's your old buddy over here in La-La-Land."

"Mitch!" she enthusiastically greeted him. "It's been awhile. How are you?"

"Busy, you know, with the usual celebrity stuff," Reynolds replied with a chuckle.

"Who overdosed now?" she retorted.

"No overdose, at least that I know of," he answered. "I'm working on a homicide investigation."

"Oh? Well that's different," Detective Benson replied. "Well, how can I help?"

"I was wondering if you or any of your buddies over there in the Big Apple could help me find the singer Jem," he told her.

"Jem? As in Jem and the Holograms?" Liz was puzzled. No other celebrity had a squeaky clean image as she did.

"Yes, Jem of the Holograms," he reiterated.

"Is she a suspect?" Benson curiously asked.

"Not quite," he clarified. "But we need to talk to her as soon as possible. The only lead we have is that she's in New York right now."

"I'll get on it," she replied.

"Thanks, Liz! Keep me posted," Reynolds said as he hung up to make another call.

"Hello?" said a voice on the other end.

"It's Mitchell Reynolds," he replied. "I need to request a search warrant on Star –."

Suddenly, his office door flew wide open. "Where's my sister?" It was Craig Philips.

"Let me call you back." Perturbed, Reynolds quickly hung up the phone. "Who are you?" the detective barked back.

The former Blue Bloods drummer identified himself. "You asked my sister Mary to come down to the Coroner's Office to identify a body and now she's gone!"


	9. Chapter 9

**CHAPTER NINE**

"Hey, are you alright?" Kimber asked Aja as she noticed her friend sitting despondently by the phone in the living room.

"Yeah," the blue-haired guitarist sighed as she glanced at the clock on the wall. It was a quarter to nine. "I'm trying to get a hold of Craig. He said earlier he was going out to run an errand with Stormer, but I haven't heard from him since."

"Oh, I'm sure everything's fine," the younger Benton replied, trying to cheer up her friend. "Stormer said something about working on her solo album this weekend. Maybe they got caught up with that and haven't realized the time."

"Maybe," Aja replied, trying to sound up beat.

 _Ding Dong._

"Maybe that's him right now," Kimber smiled.

Aja perked up. She jumped from her seat to answer the door, only to be disappointed. "Oh, hi, Riot."

"Hello, Ladies," he greeted the two Holograms as Aja let him into the mansion. He looked like he had been through hell and back, but still managed to look like the perfect rock star that he was.

"Riot!" Jerrica came running to greet him from her office where she was meeting with Leslie.

"My lovely!" He greeted her with open arms, "I'm so glad you're alright." After a long embrace with Jerrica, he turned to Leslie, "Thank you for taking care of her."

"Of course," the attorney smiled. "I'll come by tomorrow," she said to Jerrica as she showed herself out the door.

"I'm so glad you're here," Jerrica said to the Stinger.

"How are you holding up?" he asked, looking greatly concerned.

"Oh, Riot, it was awful," she cried as she fell into his arms.

He consoled her, stroking her hair as he walked her into the living room to have a seat on the couch. Kimber and Aja followed, while Shana and Raya appeared from upstairs. They began discussing their respective meetings with the detective as the Holograms listened in disbelief over what had transpired that day.

"How did this happen?" Shana mused after hearing what both Riot and Jerrica had to say.

"So what do we do now?" Kimber added.

"Wait," Jerrica interrupted just as Riot was about to answer Kimber's question. "Do Minx and Rapture know what happened today?"

"Yes," Riot replied. "I met with them at Stingers Sound before I came here. You have their word, Jerrica," he reassured her.

"What are you guys talking about?" Aja was confused as to Minx and Rapture's involvement in the situation.

Jerrica sighed. "Minx and Rapture figured out the truth about who Jem really is," she finally revealed to everyone.

"But how?" a surprised Aja replied, glancing at Riot, assuming he had told them.

"It was the night of the dinner with my parents here at the mansion," Riot began to explain. "They had a feeling the Misfits were up to something so they took it upon themselves to follow Pizzazz, Roxie and Jetta around town. Somehow, Pizzazz knew about the beach house in Malibu and they all ended up there. They all saw us arriving there that night, only it wasn't Jerrica they saw, it was Jem."

The Holograms were stunned.

"So Minx and Rapture figured out that you weren't seeing Jem, but that Jem was actually Jerrica?" Aja clarified.

"Not exactly," Jerrica replied.

"When they called here looking for me," Riot continued, "they said you had told them Jerrica was on her way to see me, but it wasn't Jerrica who showed up, it was Jem. That's when they figured it out."

Aja sighed. "I'm so sorry, Jerrica," she remarked, realizing she had inadvertently led the Stingers to figure out the truth about her.

"It's not your fault, Aja," Jerrica reassured her. "It's my fault. I should have been more careful."

"It was no one's fault, but Pizzazz," Riot corrected her. "As far as Minx and Rapture are concerned, they know nothing about Jem." Jerrica cracked a smile as Riot lovingly placed his hand on her knee. "But I blame myself for this Eric Raymond fiasco," he despondently said. "It wouldn't have happened had I not gone ahead with the missing person's report."

"It's not your fault someone had enough of Eric's schemes and killed him!" Kimber bluntly remarked.

"Kimber!" Raya interjected. "Show a little respect here. The guy is dead."

"Sorry, that was out of line," the red head acknowledged. "But how could Riot have known trying to remove Eric from the company would lead to the police identifying the unknown body at the beach?"

"Kimber's right, it's not your fault. You were only going by what your attorneys advised," Jerrica poignantly said to him, placing her hand on top of his.

"So what happens now?" Shana asked, still in shock.

All eyes turned to Riot. He took a deep breath and exhaled. "I honestly don't know," he murmured as he stood up from the couch and nervously began to slowly pace around the living room.

"Well, at least you know what happened to your earrings," Raya chimed in. It was classic Raya to find the silver lining in every dismal situation.

"Does anyone else find it odd that someone breaks into your house, steals your earrings and nothing else, and those earrings turn up on not just any dead body, but Eric Raymond's?" Aja wondered.

"Yeah," Kimber replied. "It's as if they're trying to frame you or Jem for a crime you didn't commit."

"The thought has crossed my mind," Jerrica disclosed to her friends and sister. "But who?"

"Do you think Pizzazz would be that desperate enough to get you away from Riot?" Aja questioned her friend.

Jerrica and Riot gave each other a blank look. "I guess anything is possible with that one," Riot admitted. "However, a murder plot like that requires too much thinking for someone of her IQ level," he ridiculed the troubled Misfit.

"I'm going to call Stormer to see if Pizzazz has ever mentioned anything sordid like this," Kimber replied as she went into the kitchen to call her friend.

"Too bad I can't get those earrings back," Jerrica murmured. "It would make it a lot easier for me to change into Jem and talk to the police to clear my name."

Riot was taken aback by Jerrica's comment. "What are you saying? Are you thinking of going back to the police as Jem?" he worriedly asked.

"Not thinking of doing it, I'm going to do it," she stated. "It's the only way to clear Jem's name. They're never going to find her unless I am her."

Shana shook her head in agreement with Riot. "I don't know about that Jerrica. What if they arrest Jem?"

"Arrest Jem for what? She didn't kill Eric Raymond," she defiantly replied.

"Please don't do it," Riot pleaded with her, concerned for her safety.

"Riot, it's the only way to clear Jem's name from their suspect list. The fact that she's nowhere to be found right now is suspicious enough," she explained.

He knew she was right, but letting her walk into the police station in a pink wig and make-up didn't sound like a fool proof plan to clear Jem's name. There had to be another way for "Jem" to talk to the police without sacrificing Jerrica's safety. Suddenly, he had an idea.

"Somehow your father managed to program those earrings to communicate with Synergy and project holograms," he began to think out loud. "Is it possible to get someone else to do the same thing?" he wondered.

"Yes," Jerrica slowly began to reply. "But who do we know that we can trust to do that?"

"The only person I know capable of doing so is Techrat," Riot replied. All four Holograms in the room fervently shook their heads no.

"Aja, you once got my mother's master recordings off Synergy's memory," Jerrica mentioned.

Her friend hesitated. "Decoding a computer is one thing, Jerrica. But doing what your father did and putting it in something as tiny as an earring," she paused thoughtfully, "I don't think I can do it."

Riot abruptly left the room just as Kimber returned from the kitchen. "I can't get a hold of her," she announced. "I thought she would be home by now," she said, glancing at the clock. "Maybe she and Craig really are getting into this album."

Aja began to look worried. "I'll try Craig's apartment," she said, reaching over to the phone in the living room.

"There must be another way to do this," Jerrica contemplated.

"Do what?" Kimber wondered.

"For Jem to talk to the police without having to send Jerrica down to the station in a pink wig and make-up," Shana explained.

"Couldn't we put Synergy in a van and get her to project a Jem hologram from outside the police station?" Kimber suggested.

"We'd have to run an extension cord from inside the police station to the van to power Synergy," Shana pointed out.

"Oh yeah, I forgot that minor detail," Kimber giggled just as Riot returned from the kitchen in a hurry.

"I have an idea!" he announced as he made his way to Jerrica and planted a quick kiss on her lips. "I'll be back in a few hours," he added as he turned to leave the mansion.

"Wait, Riot," Aja called out to him as he stepped outside the door. He quickly peered back in to see what Aja wanted. "Were Craig and Stormer at Stingers Sound when you were there this evening to talk to Minx and Rapture?"

He shook his head no. "I don't recall seeing anyone else at Stingers Sound. It was only my car and Minx's car in the garage."

"Okay, thanks," a concerned-looking Aja replied.

"I won't be long," he smiled at Jerrica as he closed the door behind him.

"Where do you think he went off to?" Kimber asked her sister.

Jerrica shrugged her shoulders.


	10. Chapter 10

**CHAPTER TEN**

Craig and Detective Reynolds arrived at the Coroner's Office just after nine in the evening. It took a great deal of convincing, but Craig was finally able to urge Reynolds to look into Stormer's disappearance. The detective was skeptical to believe Craig, thinking that it was a ploy to distract him from the investigation. After all, Craig was on Riot's payroll now. However, Stormer had gone down there at the request of the detective. Therefore, he felt somewhat obligated to look into her disappearance, _if_ she really disappeared.

The building had closed down four hours earlier. Craig had been waiting for his sister until well past five until the last person had finally left for the night. When he asked him about his sister, the employee had no idea what he was talking about as there was no one else, living at least, left inside the building.

"Are you sure you didn't see her leave with anyone?" the detective asked him once more as they entered the building. It was cold and dark.

"No, I'm sure," he insisted. "My car was parked out front. I didn't see anyone else come or go after we arrived."

The detective led them to a back office where they kept the security footage. They saw Stormer arriving and an employee walking her down to the identification room. Reynolds fast-forwarded through the footage until the building closed down at five that day. There was no evidence of Stormer ever leaving the building. Reynolds was growing suspicious.

He led Craig down to the room where all identifications were made and looked into the case file for Eric Raymond. "Is that him?" he asked Craig, showing him a Polaroid.

Craig scanned the photo. "No, absolutely not!" he replied. "Eric Raymond was not blonde."

"Are you sure he couldn't have dyed it?" Reynolds questioned him.

"Well he could have," Craig began, "but unless he underwent cosmetic surgery, I guarantee you that's not Eric Raymond."

Reynolds was growing ever more suspicious. Had Riot sent him to pull a fast one on him, or was Craig really telling the truth, he wondered. "Ok, this way then," he replied, leading him to another room. "That's odd," the detective murmured.

"What's odd?" Craig asked.

"They left a body on the examining table," the detective replied. "They never do that," he continued, looking at the identification tag. "Well, look here, this is the one we're looking for."

As the detective raised the blanket, Craig peered beneath it. He was taken aback, "That is definitely not Eric Raymond!"

The detective was alarmed. He looked into the case file to see who had signed off on the positive identification earlier. "Do you know Phyllis Gabor?"

Craig was floored. "You mean Pizzazz of the Misfits?"

"The one who was admitted to rehab recently?" he clarified.

"Yes, that's her," Craig replied. "I wish I didn't, but yes, I know Phyllis and if this is another one of Eric's sick and twisted games, I'm not surprised she would be involved."

Reynolds quickly ran to the phone. "This is detective Reynolds," he said into the receiver. "I need an APB on Phyllis Gabor, a.k.a. Pizzazz of the Misfits, Mary Philips, formerly of the Misfits, and Eric Raymond, former manager of the Misfits."


	11. Chapter 11

**CHAPTER ELEVEN**

"Wheels up as soon as they get here," said a familiar male voice.

"As soon as _who_ gets here?" said another familiar voice. Only this time it was female.

"Just sit over there and be quiet," the man said.

"I'm not going to do anything you say until you tell me!" the woman demanded to know.

"For heaven sakes, Pizzazz, have you taken your meds yet?" the man mockingly asked.

"That's none of your business!" Pizzazz retorted. "How did you know?"

"I have my sources," the man condescendingly replied.

Just lying a few feet away was Stormer, who was slowly regaining consciousness. She remembered seeing Eric Raymond's face just before she blacked out, but perhaps it was just a dream, or so she thought. Now she was hearing his voice and Pizzazz's.

"She's waking up!" she heard Pizzazz say.

"Wonderful," Eric sarcastically sighed.

"Where – where am I?" Stormer murmured as she slowly got up from the seats she was lying on.

"Happy to see me?" Pizzazz enthusiastically greeted her.

"Pizzazz?" Stormer replied. "What happened?"

"Eric and I thought you could use a little trip!" she laughed. "Now wouldn't that be fun? Just like old times!" Her medication was beginning to wear off.

"Enough, Pizzazz!" he retorted. Eric was quickly growing tired of having her around. The former Misfit moved aside for him to approach Stormer. Just as Eric was about to speak, a woman came on board the plane. "Leslie!" he greeted her. "Where is she?" he anxiously asked when he realized she was alone.

" _He_ arrived just as I was about to leave with her," she informed him, speaking with a British accent.

"Well, did you at least find it?" he continued to question her.

Leslie sighed. "No," she despondently replied. "I asked her to take me on a tour of the mansion, but aside from some ghastly decorated rooms, I found nothing."

"Did she at least mention anything about Jem?" he inquired.

She shook her head, "No."

A look of disappointment came across Eric's face. "Well then," he continued. "On to plan B."

Leslie nodded in agreement. "It'll have to be in the morning. There are too many people at home with her right now."

"Understandable," Eric replied as he moved in close to give Leslie a passionate kiss. "I'll see you tomorrow," he smirked.

"Until tomorrow," she smiled as she left the plane.

" _Who_ was that?" Pizzazz inquisitively asked with a probing eye, somewhat intrigued that Eric could attract a moderately attractive woman as Leslie.

"That was Jerrica Benton's attorney," he devilishly smiled. "And my wife."

"Your wife?!" the green-haired singer coughed as she took a sip of Whiskey. "How did you manage her?"

Eric pretended not to hear her insulting remarks. "Wheels up in the am," he notified the pilot.

"So we have to sleep here until the morning?" Pizzazz squealed.

"You'll be fine," Eric reassured her.

"No, I want out!" the former Misfit demanded as she headed for the exit.

"Get back here, Pizzazz!" he ordered her. However, just before he could grab her arm, Pizzazz stopped on her own accord.

"What's my father's plane doing on the runway?" she gasped as she spotted the Gabor Industries logo on a Learjet in the distance. "That son of a –! He never told me he was leaving town!" She screamed like a toddler throwing a tantrum.

Eric slowly reached for her arm and gently led her back into the plane. Her medication had definitely worn off. "It's alright, Pizzazz," he began to console her as he led her to a seat on the plane. "Here, take this," he urged her, handing her two pills. Pizzazz was reluctant. "It'll help you calm down," he comforted her.

She hesitated for a moment, but quickly popped both pills and chased them down with the rest of the Whiskey in her glass. In minutes, Pizzazz was out cold.


	12. Chapter 12

**CHAPTER TWELVE**

 _Ladies and Gentlemen, the Stingers!_

Rio couldn't flip to the next channel quickly enough before he caught sight of _him_. Although it was a _Saturday Night Live_ rerun from earlier that year when the Stingers were on the show, the last thing he needed was a reminder of the man who took Jerrica away from him.

It had been several weeks since his encounter with her and Riot at the Independence Day concert, but the pain was still fresh in his heart. Rio blamed himself for how things ended up with her and knew the only way he could truly move on was to leave town. So he did. He moved to the Pacific Northwest to work for a major software company. While he enjoyed his job and often stayed late at the office to keep his mind off the past, there was no denying that his life was empty and he missed the one person he let get away.

He had started to date again, mainly women he met at the company or at company events, but no one piqued his interest beyond a first date. That night's date was no different. Her name was Bridget, a new graduate from the local university. She was a charming and intelligent young woman, but the chemistry just wasn't there, at least not like it was with Jem. So after meeting for dinner and drinks in town, Rio called it a night and went home as Bridget stayed out to meet up with friends at a club. Maybe he'd call her again. Maybe he wouldn't.

Determined not to let thoughts of _her_ flood his mind as they frequently did, Rio put in an old Sherlock Holmes movie in his VCR. He then went to his kitchen to make himself a drink. This had become a late night time ritual for him. It was his way of helping him fall asleep without letting his mind wander back to Los Angeles.

As he stood in front of his liquor cabinet with a glass full of ice, he scanned the options for that night's bedtime drink. Nothing stood out. Perhaps his choices had gotten too mundane that it was time for a visit to the local liquor store around the corner from his apartment. As he reached for a bottle of Jack Daniel's, there was a knock at the door. _"Well who could that be?"_ he thought to himself. The only person who came to mind was Bridget. Maybe she had had too much fun at the club and was looking for a late cap with him. It certainly wasn't something he was opposed to as it had been several months since he had been with anyone.

He got to the door and quickly looked out the peep hole. Stunned, he flung the door wide open. "What are you doing here?" he demanded to know.

"Jerrica needs your help." It was Riot.


	13. Chapter 13

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN**

"I'm not so sure Jerrica will like this, Riot." Kimber apprehensively bit her bottom lip.

"Not to worry, Kimber," the handsome singer replied, gently patting her shoulder. "I'll speak to her as soon as she wakes up. Speaking of which," he continued as he glanced down at his watch, "it isn't like her to sleep in this late."

It was 8:30 in the morning. Even on weekends, Jerrica was an early riser often beating everyone to the kitchen. Today, Shana was the only other one still sleeping in. Raya left to attend Sunday mass with her family to pray for Jerrica, and Aja left shortly thereafter to see if Craig had finally returned home. He still wasn't answering his phone, which greatly worried her.

"Jerrica did go to bed really late last night waiting for you," Kimber explained.

Riot yawned. "I feel terrible about that," he mused. "I can imagine how tired she must be." He had a late night, himself, trying to help Jerrica.

"Coffee?" the redhead asked as she headed for the coffeemaker.

"That would be wonderful. Thank you," he smiled.

"Did I hear someone say coffee?" It was Jerrica. "I could really use some this morning," she yawned.

"My lovely," Riot beamed as she approached him in the kitchen, wearing a pair of sweats with her hair tied back in a ponytail. Even without the glitz and glamour, Riot was in awe of her. She returned his smile upon seeing the Stinger, but it was obvious to him that her usual radiant glow was missing.

"What happened to you last night?" she asked as she fell into his arms for a lengthy embrace. Neither one wanted to let the other go.

"I must apologize for running off so hastily," he began, grabbing her hand to lead her somewhere to talk privately, "but there's something I need to tell you –"

"What's the address of Stinger Sound?" a familiar voice interrupted.

"Rio?!" Jerrica gasped. "What are you doing here?" Her ex-boyfriend was the last person she expected to see at the mansion.

"Jerrica, hi," he tepidly replied. "I-I-I –"

"I asked him to help," Riot revealed, much to Jerrica's surprise.

"To help with what?" she hesitantly replied, unsure of what he was going to say.

Riot sighed as he briefly paused. "With programming Synergy's holograms into the replica Jem Star earrings."

Jerrica's eyes widened. "You told him?!"

"I had to," he answered. "There was no one else I could turn to for help," he explained with a look of desperation in his eyes.

Jerrica sighed. "I wish you would have talked to me about it first."

"I'm sorry, Darling, but I couldn't waste any more time sitting around here while doing nothing," he continued.

"But how did you even find him?" Jerrica pressed. "I thought you had moved," she turned to her ex.

"Do you remember my meeting with Harvey Gabor after the incident at the concert last month?" Riot began before Rio could speak. Jerrica nodded. A wave of guilt suddenly hit Rio as he was reminded of helping Pizzazz's schemes in trying to break Riot and Jerrica up. "Well," Riot continued, "he allowed me to use his plane to get Rio last night and bring him here."

"Does Pizzazz's father know too?" Jerrica shrieked.

"Absolutely not!" Riot quickly proclaimed. "Regardless of Mr. Gabor's promises, I would never trust anyone blood related to that lunatic. But you have Rio's word," he reassured her as he glanced at his new ally for assurance.

"Your secret's safe with me, Jerrica," Rio further maintained. "You can trust me."

It was difficult to watch her interact with Riot still. After all, Rio had spent the last few weeks unsuccessfully trying to forget Jerrica and now she stood before him with her hand clasped to someone else's hand. But he was determined to help her clear her name, and Jem's. It wasn't an attempt to win her back, as it was obvious there was very little chance of that happening. However, after the stunt he tried to pull with Pizzazz, he owed it to Jerrica to help her.

"I know. Thank you, Rio," she murmured as an awkward silence ensued. After everything that happened between them in the last few months, Jerrica wasn't so sure how to deal with Rio. Nevertheless, she knew he was being genuine and she could trust him.

"Coffee's ready," Kimber chimed in to break the silence.

Riot looked at his watch. "I need to take off," he turned to Jerrica as he gently placed a kiss on her forehead. "I have a meeting with the attorneys this morning. I believe Leslie will be over soon to see you as well, but I'll be back as soon the meeting is over," he promised.

"Alright," Jerrica nodded.

Riot gently cupped her face in his hands. "Are we okay?" he whispered, looking for reassurance that she forgave him for telling Rio about Synergy.

"Of course," she whispered back with a smile as the Stinger gently kissed her forehead. While she was upset that he didn't speak to her first before bringing in Rio to help, she understood why he did it and would have probably turned to Rio for help herself.

"How about some coffee to go?" Kimber held up a Thermos for him to take.

Riot smiled at her kind gesture. "Thank you, Kimber." As he walked by her to grab the coffee, he subtly leaned over and whispered, "take care of her." She gave him a friendly nod as he turned to leave.

Once they heard the front door shut behind him, another moment of silence ensued. Rio and Jerrica exchanged awkward glances, unsure of what to say to each other. Fortunately, it wasn't as weird with Kimber in the room pouring mugs of coffee for them.

"So," Jerrica began to break the silence. "What can I do to help?" she asked, taking a sip from her mug to avoid having to make eye contact with him.

"Look, Jerrica," Rio sighed. "I'm really sorry about what happened –"

"No, Rio," she interjected. "I'm the one who owes you an apology. If I had just been honest with you about who Jem really was, then things wouldn't have ended so sour between us."

Rio was taken aback. He had the feeling Riot hadn't told her everything about what happened at the concert and his involvement with Pizzazz's attempt to humiliate her. However, he wasn't about to tell her now. For whatever reasons Riot had in not telling her, what happened was no longer important. What was important was her freedom.

"Let's just put the past behind us," he replied, extending his hand to gesture a truce between them.

"Agreed," Jerrica smiled as they shook hands. And just like that, the uneasiness of Rio's presence was gone.

He led Jerrica and Kimber into Synergy's secret room and quickly began to explain what he had been working on since he and Riot arrived at the mansion early that morning. While he was still working on getting holograms to project from the new set of Jem Star earrings that Riot had made, he managed to implement a global positioning tracker onto a ring that connected to Synergy's radar system.

"Whoever has this ring," he began to explain as he held it up for the Bentons to see, "Synergy can pinpoint that person's exact location and we can see it on the screen." Immediately, the screen on the computer switched from Synergy's image to a radar.

"Like the actual earrings had!" Kimber was in awe.

"Go ahead, try it," he urged Jerrica.

She grabbed the ring from him and went to another part of the mansion. Kimber and Rio saw the position of the tracker on Synergy's computer move as Jerrica moved around the house.

"Outrageous!" Kimber shrieked.

Rio smiled proudly at his accomplishment. "Since it's just a normal looking ring, no one will ever suspect that it's a high-tech tracking device!"

Suddenly, the doorbell ring. They heard Jerrica moving to answer it.

"What?!" they heard her yelp. "This must be a mistake!"

Kimber and Rio quickly ran from the secret room to the foyer. "What's going on?" Kimber asked as she and Rio arrived in time to see Jerrica getting handcuffed.

"I'm Detective Sanders," a man flashed his badge at them. "I work with Detective Reynolds and Miss Benton is under arrest for aiding and abetting a murderer."

"This is a mistake!" Kimber proclaimed. "My sister isn't responsible for Eric's murder!"

"No, but we have ample evidence to convict Jem and unless she gives up Jem's whereabouts, your sister is an accomplice to a major crime," the detective replied.

Kimber and Jerrica glanced at each other, hoping one would know what to do, but each were afraid of divulging Jem's true identity.

"Are the handcuffs necessary?" a perturbed Rio butted in. "She's not a flight risk."

"It's just standard procedure," the detective explained as he began to lead Jerrica out the door.

"Call Riot," Jerrica finally whispered to her sister as Kimber and Rio watched her leave the mansion in handcuffs.


	14. Chapter 14

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN**

"Are you ready?" a frantic Riot burst into Synergy's secret room. The rock star had just sat down to meet with his attorneys when he received a hysterical phone call from Kimber about Jerrica's pending arrest. It worried him even more that Leslie had not arrived at the mansion as she said she would and the other two attorneys on his legal team had not heard from her that day. Even if Leslie had shown up, however, there wasn't much she could do for Jerrica other than offer legal advice. They needed Synergy's help.

Rio sighed, looking a bit apprehensive. "Ready," he replied. While he was confident in his technological abilities, Jerrica's freedom was resting on his shoulders.

"This better work," a jittery Kimber commented. "I can't lose my sister," she began to cry.

Riot placed his arms around her. "We'll get her out," he promised, trying to calm her down. "I can't lose her either." Riot felt a lump in his throat.

"Let's go," Rio said to the Stinger, grabbing a bag full of his equipment.

"What is all that?" Riot wondered, eying Rio's large duffle bag.

"Everything we need to help Jerrica," he replied.

"What happened to the earrings?" he asked. "I thought that's all we were going to use."

"Don't worry," Rio reassured him. "I have this all handled.

"This better work," Riot said under his breath, reiterating Kimber's fears, as the two men headed for Riot's car. Shana came running down the stairs as soon as she heard Riot arrive.

"I'm going with you," Kimber said, trailing behind.

"No Kimber," Riot contested. "I need you to stay here with Shana and wait for the other girls," he instructed the two of them. "If the press gets wind of this, Stingers Sound and Starlight Music are in for a PR disaster. I'll need the two of you to keep things under control if it gets to that point. After all, you are second in command at Starlight," he reminded her.

The younger Benton nodded. "Alright," she hesitantly agreed as she watched her sister's ex-boyfriend and new boyfriend leave to rescue her. It felt like the twilight zone.

"I'll call as soon as we know anything," Riot said to her as he peeled away from the mansion. Once his car hit the main road, Riot hit the pedal. He was eager to get to the police station.

"Hey, you might want to slow it down a bit," an apprehensive Rio jokingly laughed, sensing Riot's frustration.

"I see your point," the disgruntled Stinger replied, letting go of the gas pedal just slightly.

"I know you're worried about her, I'm worried about her too," he admitted, "but we can only help Jerrica if we show up in one piece, I mean two – well, you know what I mean."

After an awkward moment of silence, "You still care for her, don't you?" Riot bluntly asked.

Rio was silent. "What's the longest relationship you've ever been in?" he finally managed to reply. The Stinger was hesitant to respond. "I get it," Rio murmured at the silence, realizing that Jerrica was Riot's longest relationship.

Riot gave him a quick glare for his presumptiveness as Rio look out the window. "Why do you ask?"

"Well," Rio began, "after a decade of caring for someone, you just can't turn off those feelings no matter how hard you try."

"My father is in the military, so we moved around quite a bit when I was growing up," Riot began. "There was someone a long time ago. You might say she was my first love just as Jerrica was yours. I was new at school, it was my second high school in three years. I had a crush on her for months. Finally, we started seeing each other towards the end of the school year. By that summer, my family had to move again. We were both devastated. From then on, I didn't see a point in having a relationship unless I saw a long-term future in it." After an awkward pause he continued. "So no, I don't know what it's like to end a relationship after _that_ many years. However, I do know what it's like to love and care for someone and then have it all end."

The former Holograms road manager was taken aback by his ex-adversary's candidness with him. There was more depth to the man than his ego-centric persona led on, which often came across as shallow. Although it was a dagger to the heart to hear him allude to a future with Jerrica, it gave Rio peace knowing the man, who millions of women lusted after, wasn't stringing her along. He truly cared for her.

"I can certainly understand why you chose Jerrica of all people," Rio began, feeling like a jerk for presuming that Riot treated women just like other rock stars he had met.

Riot bit his tongue. He didn't choose Jerrica. Jerrica chose him! However, Riot saw no point in gloating now. He had already won her over. They both cared for her and he needed Rio's help to save her.

"If there's one thing we can agree on –" Riot stopped midsentence as he noticed a white van with tinted windows speeding up next to them on the highway.

"Watch out!" Rio screamed just as the van abruptly swerved into their lane.

Riot quickly put on the brakes as he tried to avoid a collision with the van, causing his own car to skid. The car finally came to a stop, but not before it nearly crashed into another vehicle going the opposite direction, causing sheer pandemonium. Just as a shaken Riot was about to exit from the car to confront the driver of the van, two black sedans quickly surrounded the car. A group of men in darks suits and sunglasses exited both vehicles and approached the Stinger's white Jaguar. Two of the men opened the driver and passenger side doors.

"Rory Llewelyn?" one man asked.

"What the hell is going on?" Riot demanded to know.

"We need both of you to come with us," the man replied, placing his hand on Riot's arm.

"Get your hand off me!" the Stinger barked back. "We're not going anywhere until you tell us what's going on," he angrily demanded as he forcefully pushed the man's hand off his arm.

"In that case," the man answered. Riot and Rio had no idea what hit them.


	15. Chapter 15

**CHAPTER FIFTEEN**

"I'm getting worried, Sean," Kimber cried as her fiancé scooped her into his arms to console her.

They were in the sitting area of the police station waiting for Detective Reynolds to arrive. It had been several hours since Riot and Rio left for the police station and there was still no word from them about Jerrica. So Kimber decided she couldn't wait around at the mansion any longer and asked Sean to accompany her to find out herself. Much to her surprise, no one at the police station had any clue what was going.

"It'll be alright, Darling," he replied in his charming British accent. Although Sean felt helpless, he did his best trying to keep her spirits up.

"It's been several hours already," she remarked. "Where are they?"

Sean replied as he wiped the tears off her face. "Just try to be a little more patient, Kimber," he told her. "I'm sure we'll have answers soon enough."

Suddenly, the door to the waiting room flung open. It was Aja.

"I'm glad you're here," her red-headed friend greeted her.

"I came down here as soon as Shana told me," a frustrated looking Aja replied. Shana remained at the mansion in case anyone called there.

"What is it?" Kimber noticed she had been crying too.

Aja hesitated. She felt selfish thinking about her own problems when they paled in comparison to what Jerrica was facing. Nonetheless, she finally cracked, knowing she couldn't hide anything from those who knew her best. "It's Craig," she replied, stating the obvious. "He hasn't been home all day. I don't think he came home last night either. His paper was still on his doorstep when I went by to check on him. And he wasn't at Stingers Sound."

"Did you check with Stormer?" Kimber asked.

"She wasn't home," replied Aja with a look of frustration on her face. "I think he's trying to avoid me!" she cried.

Kimber and Sean exchanged odd looks. It wasn't like Craig to go MIA, especially on Aja. It was obvious that the two were going through a rocky patch. Off all the Holograms, Aja spent the least amount of time with him compared to the other girls and their significant others. Even Raya, who was casually seeing Aaron Brady of the LA Dodgers, spent more time with him while he wasn't traveling with the team. However, Craig always made sure to let Aja know what was going on with him, especially if he knew they would go a few days without seeing each other.

"I can try Stormer again," Kimber offered. "I really think they're just busy working on her new album," she continued, trying to ease Aja's worries. "She did mention that Riot wanted to release her debut solo album as early in 1989 as possible."

Aja sighed. "I know. It's just that – it's just that things haven't been what I expected them to be since he moved back to LA," she finally revealed. "I've tried not to let it bother me, because I know he's busy with his new career, but it's like he's always trying to find an excuse to be busy and not be with me."

Kimber turned to Sean once more. She shrugged her shoulders at her fiancé in complete disbelief over what she was hearing from Aja. The guitarist was always the headstrong one of the group. It was as if she had a thick outer shell that couldn't be shattered as she never let anything get to her, except for when it came to Craig. With him, that protective shell was non-existent. Perhaps it was typical for a first love. There was no other love in her life before him.

The younger Benton approached her friend and extended her arms out to embrace her, "Oh, sweetie." Aja broke out in tears as Kimber continued to console her. She expected Aja to take control of the situation with Jerrica's predicament, but it was obvious the younger Benton needed to be the one in control now.

"Um, Ladies," Sean announced.

"Craig!" she shrieked upon seeing the former drummer enter the waiting room, followed by Detective Reynolds.

"Where's my sister, Detective?" Kimber demanded to know.

"I'm not sure what you mean," Reynolds replied.

"Your partner, uh, Detective Sanders," she began to explain, "he brought Jerrica down here this morning."

"Who?" Reynolds looked confused.

"Detective Sanders," Kimber answered. "He arrested Jerrica this morning."

"What?!" Reynolds' jaw dropped. "Arrest Jerrica? Why would I do that? I have _zero_ evidence against her!" he divulged.

"Then who took her?" Kimber shrieked.

Reynolds had no clue what was going on. "Did he have a badge?"

"Yes," she replied. "We didn't take a close look at it, but he had a badge."

"Where's Riot?" Craig interjected, surprised to see the Stinger wasn't there with the others.

"He and Rio left the mansion to come here several hours ago too. We haven't heard from them either!" Kimber revealed.

"Rio's back?" a surprised Aja asked, scratching her head at the thought of Riot and Rio doing anything together.

"I'll tell you later," Kimber whispered to her friend.

"Who's Rio?" Reynolds wondered.

"Rio Pacheco. He's just an old friend of the family's," Sean answered. Kimber had told him everything as they waited to hear from Riot. After all, Sean would become part of the family sooner than Riot would, if that was where they were headed, and Riot already knew everything. Even Rio knew more than he should and chances of him ever marrying Jerrica were close to zero.

"Okay," Kimber proceeded to get back to Jerrica and their missing friends. "If they're not here, then where are they?" she said to the detective.

"How long ago was it that they left to come here?" Reynolds asked.

"It's been at least five hours," an exceedingly worried Kimber cried.

The detective sighed. "I'll be right back."

"Stormer's missing too," Craig added. "I've been here all night, hoping the police would find them."

"Them?" Aja wondered whom else he was referring to.

Craig hesitated before breaking the new to the Holograms. "Pizzazz and Eric Raymond."

"Eric Raymond's dead!" Kimber wailed.

"We're not so sure about that," Craig revealed. Just as he was about to explain the events at the Coroner's office, the detective returned.

"I've placed an APB on Jerrica and your friends," said the detective, much to Kimber and Aja's relief. "However, if I'm to help you find your friends and solve the mystery of Eric Raymond's alleged murder, you need to tell me everything I need to know. And I mean everything," he warned them.

Kimber turned to Aja, who then gave her a nod to proceed. "You better sit down, Detective," the younger Benton informed him as she began to tell him _everything_.


End file.
